Human Resources and COVID 19

Human Resources (HR) as a discipline is being called upon to help navigate, and in many cases lead the navigation of employment issues while in this current pandemic environment.

For years, as a HR professional and HR leader, I have advocated and trained organization leaders and managers that every front-line leader is a HR Manager. I have trained and reminded HR managers and HR teams they should not be the "policy police" or the principal's office.

HR is relied upon to help guide employee issues....until now.

The pandemic has hit every organization. Some employers are able to maintain operations, and even continue to maintain positive revenue and profits. But most are not. The fast moving spread of the COVID-19 has had a negative impact on every aspect of the economy, employers and people.

Many of my clients are small to medium businesses and they too are concerned for the health, and I mean financial health of their company; they are concerned for the health of their employees and themselves.

HR is being relied upon to provide the most up-to-date information regarding government programs and to provide suggestions related to ensuring employee physical and financial well-being.

As of today (April 3, 2020) and on review of the current government programs being offered, it is my opinion these programs are significantly lacking, and are designed with many "strings" and restrictions attached. Rather than keeping a simple task at the forefront the governments have designed these programs with obstacles that are confusing and not needed.

I have provided a review of the current programs in a previous posting and yet my review is challenged by some business owners and managers who believe they have better information or better sources of information. Some of these owners and managers aggressively want to debate and in most circumstances have come to a predetermined outcome that their information is better. In other words - they got the answer they wanted, entered into a debate in order to "catch" or prove HR is wrong, and they have fully discounted the advice and guidance of people who might actually know better.

I get the frustration and fear.

For many years, when I present, I jokingly mention how no manager walks into the accounting office and tells the accounting staff where to put the decimals. But a manager will come into the HR office and tell the HR leader or managers how to do HR.

I respect that managers, actually everyone, may think they know more about HR than me. 

I respect managers informing themselves by using media, social media, rumours, or their own beliefs. Obtaining information from third sources and then challenging me.

I respect managers who bring debate. 

I respect managers and employees do not want to take pay reductions and are finding every possible way and method to avoid going into applying for Employment Insurance or applying for the emergency benefits. 

I respect that people believe the proposed government wage subsidy should prevent layoffs. 

I respect some employers have reserves and can hold out a little longer than others. 

Let me be absolutely clear. HR is a discipline. I trained, I learned, and I practice HR, as did many of my fellow colleagues in the HR field.

Let me also state:

• The wage subsidy program being proposed is complicated, confusing and not the answer many businesses are hoping for;
• The wage subsidy program still brings significant costs to a business that has no revenue coming in;
• Lay-offs are needed when a business has no revenue coming in. 

I cannot not effectively defend against a person’s sense of entitlement. But managers and employees need to think about their business organization being successful and remaining successful; coming out of this pandemic on the other side as a viable going-concern able to keep employees employed.

Maybe I actually know HR and know what to do...but I suppose I should check with CP 24, Facebook, CBC and CNN to validate and prepare for the HR debates.

Mark Gernon is a faculty member and lecturer of the Human Resources Management department at the University of Waterloo and the president of MPLG Management Solutions Inc. a consultancy group providing human resources, employee and labour relations leadership.